Last Updated on February 25, 2018 by CCAR Staff
LONG BEACH — A Placentia man who rode a white horse on the 91 Freeway in Long Beach on his 29th birthday the morning of Saturday, Feb. 24, was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, California Highway Patrol officials said.
According to a CHP news release, a 911 caller, around 1 a.m. reported a man riding a white horse eastbound on the 91 from Paramount Boulevard to Downey Avenue. CHP officers found the man after he exited at Downey Avenue and rode into Bellflower.
The rider, identified as Luis Alfredo Perez, was stopped and interviewed by officers who administered field sobriety tests and determined he was under the influence of alcohol, officials said.
So a horse walks onto the 91 freeway…no joke. Rider arrested by CHP for DUI in the greater Long Beach area. Don’t put yourself, your beautiful animal, or others in danger of being killed in traffic. @CBSLA @NBCLA @KTLA @ABC7 @FOXLA @CNN @FoxNews @ABC @NBCNews @CBSNews @CHP_HQ pic.twitter.com/YdiL54ctvQ
— CHP Santa Fe Springs (@CHP_SFS) February 25, 2018
They said Perez was booked into the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department jail in Lakewood and charged with driving under the influence on a horse.
The horse was unharmed and was released to Perez’s mother who, officials said, “responded to the scene very quickly.”
CHP officials also took the opportunity to tweet about the dangers of riding a horse on the freeway, something, it appeared, they never thought they’d have to bring up.
The tweet read: “Don’t put yourself, your beautiful animal, or others in danger of being killed in traffic.”
The incident took CHP officers by surprise, said Jeremy Tolen, a CHP public information officer.
“Just when you think you’ve seen and heard it all … you haven’t,” he said.
